‘House Of Gods’ Director Behind Australian Sci-Fi Feature ‘2 Moons’

EXCLUSIVE: House of Gods director Fadia Abboud is directing a “boundary pushing” sci-fi feature about under-represented communities in Australia.

The feature from not-for-profit outfit Co-Curious follows the story of five unique characters: a Samoan fa’afafine landscaper, a high-powered Arab property developer who is also a fulltime carer, a Lebanese matriarch with a secret younger lover, a socially marginalised cleaner wrestling with his past, and a dreamer who is pulled into the orbit of her mother’s Orthodox church. The characters and stories of the film draw on the cultural backgrounds of the writers and provide a commentary on what it means to be Australian, living in a global world of political and ecological uncertainty.

Abboud directed House of Gods, which was in competition at last year’s Series Mania. The show following an Australian-Iraqi family was described to us as The Sopranos in a mosque and featured in our Global Breakouts series. Abboud’s other credits include Four Years Later, which screened at the International Film Festival of India, and Hardball, which won the 2020 Prix Jeunesse International Award for Outstanding Children’s Television.

2 Moons is the result of an innovative partnership between Co-Curious and the Powerhouse, the largest museum group in Australia, after Powerhouse commissioned Co-Curious to develop the film using the multi-writer model of development to tell culturally significant stories about contemporary Australia. It has also received development support from Screen Australia.

Abboud directs a screenplay written by budding scribes James Elazzi, Gabriel Faatau’uu-Satiu, Andrew Undi Lee, Randa Sayed and Danielle Stamoulos.

Abboud said: “I am thrilled to be part of 2 Moons and work on this exciting new project alongside the talented writers, stories from where I was born and bred. These five stories push the boundaries of what you’d expect from Western Sydney communities and cultures.”

Co-Curious CEO Annabel Davis added: “We are delighted to welcome Fadia to this distinctive project. Her experience on important television projects such as House of Gods and Four Years Later alongside her connection to the material and her visual storytelling flair will ensure 2 Moons is a unique and compelling film that elevates new Australian voices and captivates audiences.”

Abboud and Sheila Jayadev join an all-female producing team which includes producer Kali Reid (8 Nights Out West, Click Bait), script producer Clare Atkins (White Fever, The Heights) and executive producer Annabel Davis (Here Out West).